Joshua Perreira has never needed the judges in his professional career. Antonio Cesar has not lost in nine fights.
The two meet in flyweight MMA at ONE Fight Night 48 on Prime Video on Friday, October 2, live in U.S. primetime from Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. The winner moves closer to a shot at the ONE Flyweight MMA World Title.
Perreira, 29, holds a 6-0 (1 NC) record built on four knockouts and two submissions. Gilbert Nakatani lasted 38 seconds against him earlier this year, in the Hawaiian's first outing back from a serious knee injury.
Cesar, 22, is 14-2 and debuted in ONE in July with a unanimous decision over Lito Adiwang, accepting the bout with a month's notice after Perreira withdrew injured.
Perreira has built his plan around taking away the Brazilian's versatility.
"Antonio is a very tough striker, a creative striker, and a young up-and-comer from Brazil. I know I'm a creative striker, and I know I'm going up against somebody like this, somebody who has a very similar style to me in some ways. I believe he was a national-level taekwondo champion. He's also a black belt in jiu-jitsu and just an all-around creative, nasty fighter," Perreira said.
"I look forward to making the ring as small as possible against him, taking away his reach, taking away his kicks, and neutralizing his grappling."
Cesar sees it differently. He views the grappling as the area where the American can be exploited.
"He is a good fighter. It's no coincidence that he is undefeated in professional MMA. Our styles are a little different. My style depends on how the fight is going. I can go from striking to jiu-jitsu or vice versa," Cesar said.
"I believe it's his somewhat awkward style and his ability to land a big shot. I believe his strengths are his punches and some of his kicks. His weakness would be the grappling."
Perreira, who has trained with Dante Leon's team at Adamas Jiu-Jitsu alongside his work under Matt Brown, views those same exchanges as an opportunity.
"I believe I'm better both in striking and on the ground. I move a lot, use a lot of feints, keep my game more structured, and don't waste positions," Cesar said.
"This time, I'm going to bring more aggression and good Muay Thai."
